Notebook: Notre Dame's Kelly explains quarterback plan

In any other year, it would figure a fifth-ranked ND team would be thetop choice of at-large teams, but New Orleans is a finalist to host the new Champions Bowl, matching the SEC and Big 12 champs beginning in 2014.

According to one bowl insider, there’s no way the Sugar Bowl wouldwant to rankle anyone within the SEC at this juncture, so another SEC team would come off the board with the first pick.

“There will be the most politics ever involved in bowl selections thisyear,” the source said.

An SEC-ND matchup would still be possible, but the source said theFiesta would probably grab ND to match up with the Big 12 champ before the Sugar Bowl could choose again.

The only compromise along those lines is if Oklahoma overtook KansasState to win the Big 12, setting up an Irish-Sooners rematch, which wouldn’t be a desirable scenario. Then the Sugar would come into play.

The Rose would be expected to pick another Pac-12 team to replaceOregon. The Orange would probably love to match ND against the ACC champ, but wouldn’t likely get the chance.Notre Dame needs to finish in the top eight of the BCS standing to beguaranteed a spot in the BCS lineup and in the top 14 to be considered.

Striking a balance

With Notre Dame on fall break this week, ND coach Brian Kelly couldpush the Irish beyond the NCAA 20-hour limit for the work week, but he won’t.

Nor is he going to give the players a mini-vacation while they’re awayfrom classes for the week.

“We don't want to change the routine,” he said. “So we bring them in.

We don't want them sleeping until 1 o'clock. We had brunch at 11o'clock and then they had some captain-led film study today.

“We are keeping them around, but we don't want it turning into asituation where they have got to be here like an NFL. We want them to relax a little bit as well.”

Upon further review

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Brian Kelly wanted to takethem back.

Not that he’s in hot water with the NCAA or even trending on Twitter.

It’s the cheese factor.

When asked a recruiting question Tuesday about how ND has been able toattract defensive front-seven talent in such abundance, Kelly responded, “Well, if you can sell Avon, you can sell Notre Dame.

You've got to knock on every door. You have got to ring every bell.”

And then after rambling on a couple of more minutes, he looked defeated.

“I can't believe I pulled that Avon analogy out,” Kelly said. “I don'tknow where that came from. Feeling a little weak on that one.”

QB envy?

Maybe Notre Dame’s starter/reliever quarterback concept will become a trend?Guess who has committed to playing two quarterbacks Saturday against10th-ranked Oklahoma (4-1)?

Former Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis, now the head coach at Kansas (1-5).

Weis will tag-team former ND quarterback Dayne Crist, a fifth-yearsenior, with redshirt freshman Michael Cummings. The latter, in a relief appearance, nearly rallied the Jayhawks to an upset of Oklahoma State last Saturday (an eventual 20-14 KU loss).

For the season, Crist is 88-of 177 (.494) passing for 1,088 yards withthree touchdowns and seven interceptions. Cummings is 7-of-14 for 87 yards and 1 TD and no picks.

Stanford tight end Zach Ertz was the only Irish opposing player, pastor future this season, to make the first team.

BYU linebacker Kyle Van Noy and USC’s Morgan Breslin are thesecond-teamers the Irish have yet to face this season. Other Irish opposing players to make the second team were Michigan offensive tackle Taylor Lewan and Purdue defensive tackle Kawann Short.

Notable numbers

-- Through six games, 39.1 percent of ND’s opponents’ drives have endedin three-and-outs. That’s the sixth-best figure among BCS automatic-qualifying schools. Alabama leads with a 50 percent rate in that category.

-- Notre Dame has held five straight opponents to fewer than 300 yardsin total offense. The last time the Irish cobbled together such a string started with the Fiesta Bowl to end the 1988 national title run along with the first four games of the 1989 season.

-- Notre Dame has not allowed a rushing touchdown in eight straightgames, dating back to last season. It’s the longest such streak at ND since an eight-game stretch in 1976-77.

-- The Irish defense hasn’t given up a touchdown of any kind in 16straight quarters. That’s the longest streak since the 1980 season.

-- Saturday’s 20-13 overtime win over Stanford was just the eighth gamein the 32 Brian Kelly has coached at Notre Dame in which the Irish trailed at halftime. It marked the second time in those eight games in which they came from behind to win.

-- The Irish will be playing as a Top 5 team Saturday for the firsttime since the 2006 season. Notre Dame is 57-7 at home all-time as a Top 5 team.

-- BYU is 4-8 all-time against Top 5 teams, its last win coming in 2009against No. 3 Oklahoma.

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-- There are 38 members of BYU’s football team currently serving MormonMissions in 17 countries around the world.